


Fixing A Broken Thread

by bellydancer_10



Category: Unbroken (2014)
Genre: Drama, F/M, Forbidden Love, M/M, Mentions of Homosexuality, Prisoner of War, Romance, War, World War II, historical fiction - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-30
Updated: 2016-06-29
Packaged: 2018-07-19 03:31:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,835
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7343056
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bellydancer_10/pseuds/bellydancer_10
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gwyneth Baines was raised and grew up in Japan before the start of World War II, marrying her best friend who is a son of Japan. When war breaks out between her adopted country and the Allied powers and her husband is sent out onto the frontlines, Gwyneth is arrested unjustly and accused of treason. She is offered to become a tool of propaganda in exchange for her freedom, but she refuses and is sent to Omori Camp, also known as punishment camp, as punishment. It is there at the Omori Prisoner of War Camp that she suffers under the hands of the infamous corporal who will stop at nothing to make her his. The only way to survive in the camp is to have hope, but as the days go by with the corporal continuing to torture her, Gwyneth begins to lose hope of ever making it out alive. She only prays that her husband will make it out of the frontlines alive...</p>
<p>Realistically speaking, I know they would never put a woman in an all-male prison camp, but this is just a fiction and I do not claim that whatever happens in this story is true. It is just a fanfiction and is for fun only. Hope you enjoy it!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Fixing A Broken Thread

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, everyone, so I noticed that my story for this fandom is the only one that does not have M/M relationship, but I will probably have mentions of homosexual relationships. Hope that is okay with you all and that you enjoy the story regardless.
> 
> I do apologize in advance if I make a historical mistake or/and cultural mistake on Japanese culture. I did some research on the Japanese view of other races, but I got very little information on it. According to the Japanese YouTuber Yuta, the view of "race" is very different than how America views it today, but I am not positive if the Japanese view of race has changed as a result of the end of WWII and that maybe the view of race was different before and during WWII. I heard that it was, so I am going to be doing that. Also, this chapter may seem a bit long and I do apologize for that as well. I am just introducing the characters first, to have you get a feel for them and how they are all connected before getting to the good stuff. I hope you like the story. Constructive criticism is fine, but flames are not, so please no flames.
> 
> I do want to give a big shout out and thank you to one of the authors in this fandom who encouraged me to write this and for helping me writing the first chapter. Thank you so much and I hope you enjoy the first chapter :) <3
> 
> Nothing belongs to me, except for my OCs, everything else belongs to Angelina Jolie (the director of this movie) and Laura Hillenbrand (the author of the book).

_**Chapter One** _

_**Introduction; Good News and Bad News** _

Gwyneth Baines may have been born into a family that held Western values, and she may have the typical Aryan looks such as the pale skin with blonde hair and blue eyes, but Gwyneth herself was not born in the West. She was born and raised in Japan where she grew up in an all-girls orphanage and was raised with Japanese values. She did not really know her mother since she died giving birth to her, and she did not remember much of her father since he died in a work accident when she was really young. Because Gwyneth did not have any living relatives to take care of her, the Japanese authorities took her to the all-girls orphanage in Tokyo.

At the orphanage, Gwyneth had experienced discrimination not only from the mistress of the orphanage, but also from some of the girls there as well. She was often made fun of for not being Japanese. Being outcasted and teased by her peers often would upset Gwyneth that it would sometimes leave her in tears, but she would always bounce right back and think to herself that she will be alright in the end. Despite her bleak situation, she sincerely believed that things would get better for her in the end, and it turns out she was right.

The year that Gwyneth turned six years old, a very important-looking man came to the orphanage and talked privately to the mistress. After he left, the mistress of the orphanage called Gwyneth over to her office and told her that she was to go to school to get an education in order to become “useful” to society. Unlike the other girls who went to the public school in the neighborhood nearby, though, Gwyneth strangely went to a private prestige school in a district where high class families lived. Gwyneth was surprised that she was going to a school such as that when she knew the mistress did not make enough money to send her to and so she asked the mistress about it. However, when she did, she got yelled at it for it, being told that she was ungrateful for not appreciating what the authorities were doing for her and was then punished for it, and so she never asked about it again after that (1).

It was there at the school where she would meet the two most important people in her life—one that would love her unconditionally and the other that would damage her, but never truly break her.

Toshiaki ‘Toshi’ Hashimoto was one of the first few people that treated her rather kindly on the first day of school and quickly become one of her very best friends. He did not look down at her as if she was any different from him and did not call her any other derogatory names used for Westerners the way the other children did, he just treated her like she was human. Despite being teased by others for being friends with her and coming from a family that did not trust people who were not Japanese, he still remained friends with her, and his loyalty was something that Gwyneth had deeply appreciated and still does.

The other person that she met in grade school was one of the people that she often wished she would not have met at all, and his name was Mutsuhiro Watanabe. Like most children at the school, Watanabe came from a wealthy family, and he often teased other children for being different, like Toshi and Gwyneth.

While Toshi was from the same social class as Watanabe, Toshi was often outcasted by his peers for having different aspirations than most boys his age. During that time, schools were beginning to indoctrinate children to be loyal citizens to the country and to the Emperor, and many young boys aspired to become soldiers to fight for their country. However, Toshi did not have any aspirations to become a soldier at all; instead, he aspired to become a painter. Not many people openly spoke about aspiring to become something other than a soldier as Toshi did, and he was often outcasted for his peers because of that. And, on top of that, he considered Gwyneth, who looked like a Westerner, to be his best friend. That was just not what many children did in Japan during pre-WWII since many of them were loyal to their country and wanted to serve it in some way. Toshi did everything that a son of Japan was not supposed to do during that time, and that is what made him stand out from others.

Gwyneth did not fare any better, either.

Often, she would be ganged up by Watanabe and his gang, and they would call her mean things. Sometimes, they would throw rocks at her and pull her hair. Some of the girls at the school were nice to her, but most of the time, they just ignored her for fear of being outcasted themselves; others, though, were downright mean to her. They would tell her she was an outsider who did not belong anywhere and sometimes tell her how ugly she was and that no one would want her. There were days where Gwyneth would cry because of the things they would say to her, but she was lucky she had Toshi because he would always make her feel better right after. Another person that helped her get through her bad days too was a very kind bookshop owner named Hiraku Kawaguchi. Loving books ever since she could remember, Gwyneth would go to his bookshop everyday just to read a book. She never had any money to buy any, but Mr. Kawaguchi was very understanding of it and would let her read the books he had available. Gwyneth enjoyed reading about worlds outside of Japan and make believe lands where characters would go on adventures and save the world.

As time went on, Gwyneth and Toshi grew and matured both physically and mentally.

Toshi grew up into a rather handsome man, becoming taller than the average Japanese person, with short thick black hair that he left without gel, making little strands of bangs fall on each side of his forehead. His eyesight was not so great, so he had to wear glasses, but his eyes radiated kindness and warmth that Gwyneth sometimes found herself lost in them. He also had a bright smile that was contagious and could make anyone’s day better; in fact, he knew how contagious his smile was that he would often use it against Gwyneth whenever she was having a bad day, and it would just get her to smile every time. The thing that never changed, though, was his passion for painting. He still loved to paint and was very good at it that his art teachers often encouraged him to pursue it.

A lot of girls found him very attractive not only for his looks, but his personality as well. He was a very kind person and treated everyone with respect, and he was also humble, never really bragging anything about himself. It was a trait that Gwyneth honestly found the most attractive about him. He would sometimes come off as reserved who never let his emotions show, but deep inside, he was a very emotional and passionate person. Not many people knew that about him, though, only Gwyneth, a couple of other people, and his family knew how emotional and passionate he really was.

Gwyneth also grew up, and a lot of people said she grew into a very beautiful woman, even though she didn’t believe it when they told her so. She was about five feet and four inches tall and had long blonde hair that was naturally curly and sapphire eyes that sparkled whenever she was happy. She also grew up rather skinny, but still had some curves, having an hourglass figure that she would often find men—both foreign and Japanese men—who would try to woo her.

Often times, when foreign men tried wooing her, it did not work because they mostly spoke English, and Gwyneth never understood them since she forgot most of her English and had not spoken it since she was five years old. She always found it funny to see the looks on foreign men’s faces, especially Americans, when they found out that she was a white girl living in Japan and did not speak a lick of English. Once in a while, she would get wooed by Japanese men. Although it felt nice that some Japanese men would find her attractive, Gwyneth knew it would not go any farther than that. She knew their intention was not to marry her, but just have fun with her since many Japanese families were against the idea of their son marrying someone who looks like a foreigner. There weren’t any laws against interracial marriage, there were some interracial couples, but there were very few of them. It would sometimes hurt Gwyneth, but she had gotten so used to it that it doesn’t bother her as much anymore.

Not only was she beautiful on the outside, but she was beautiful on the inside as well. Despite being teased and bullied by others throughout her whole life, Gwyneth believed the good in everyone and was very kind to others and respected them regardless of what their race or nationality was or who they were. Being teased for who she was taught Gwyneth to love and respect others for who they are, and so she was kind to everyone, even those who were outcasted for being different. The thing that never changed was her love of books, she still loved to read, her favorite books being romance novels and adventure as well. Because she read a lot of books growing up, she was considered to be very smart in her classes and she hoped to become a literature teacher one day and would be able to go to college to do that.

Another person who changed as well was Watanabe, although both Toshi and Gwyneth thought it was not by much. Physically, Watanabe matured into a rather handsome man, Gwyneth would admit that, he was definitely pleasing to the eye as many girls were attracted to him. For Gwyneth, though, that is where the admiration for him stops.

Watanabe had definitely matured and grew out of the bullying stage, but he replaced it with arrogance, often flaunting his wealth and knowledge in front of others. Arrogance was a trait that Gwyneth did not find attractive in men and she did not understand why most girls were attracted to him. Most of the time, Gwyneth tried to at least be civil with him and think to herself that he was a good person deep inside. Toshi, on the other hand, was the one who struggled to be polite to Watanabe.

Toshi’s family was very good friends with Watanabe and his family, so Toshi always had to be polite to Watanabe or else suffer the wrath of his father. Often times, though, he would find himself getting irritated with Watanabe and wanting to punch him. Gwyneth did not like Watanabe much either, but, for some reason, both Toshi and Watanabe just hated each other. They would often throw insults at each other, either directly or indirectly, and sometimes they would get into fist fights. There were times where Gwyneth had to pull Toshi away from Watanabe because of how close he was to hitting him. Gwyneth did not quite understand the animosity they had for each other nor did she understand the incredulous look Mr. Kawaguchi would give her whenever she said so.

Currently, Gwyneth was working at Mr. Kawaguchi’s bookshop as his assistant since the latter’s health would sometimes prevent him from working that he needed help around the shop. Both Gwyneth and Mr. Kawaguchi had a very close relationship, almost like a father-daughter relationship. Gwyneth would help around the bookshop and would take care of Mr. Kawaguchi whenever he was not feeling well, and Mr. Kawaguchi would often look out for Gwyneth like how a father looks out for his daughter. He considered Gwyneth like his own daughter, and he once had a wife and daughter a long time ago before they died of tuberculosis. This happened long before Gwyneth was even born, but Mr. Kawaguchi would often tell stories about them and how Gwyneth reminded him of his own daughter because of how they both had the same spirit. Sometimes, he would get overprotective of Gwyneth whenever a guy showed an interest in her. It would annoy Gwyneth sometimes, but she appreciated it at the same time because it kept all the guys who had bad intentions away from her, at least most of them.

When Gwyneth turned sixteen, Mr. Kawaguchi officially hired her as his assistant. In exchange for her employment, she received benefits of living there at Mr. Kawaguchi’s house with no monthly rent fees. It was his way of expressing his gratitude for what Gwyneth had done for him of all the times he was ill and had helped around the bookshop, and Gwyneth responded in kind by cooking meals for him and working hard to earn the trust of his customers, who some were a bit mistrusting of her since she looked like a foreigner. Eventually, though, they all warmed up to her, some of them loving her while others respected her.

It was the year 1937, the year that Gwyneth was to turn seventeen. It was on a spring day in May that Gwyneth and Mr. Kawaguchi were working, and it was one of their busiest times since students, especially college students, were getting ready to go back to school (2). The bookshop was not too busy, but it was busy enough where Gwyneth kept staying on her feet. A lot of people kept coming in and asking for a specific book, either for recreational or for school, and local teachers came in and asked for at least over a hundred copies of a book for their classes. Pretty soon, Gwyneth and Mr. Kawaguchi had to fill in orders for new copies of certain books.

It was about at least fifteen minutes before Gwyneth’s lunch break and things were starting to calm down, if only briefly. Gwyneth was filling out an order when Mr. Kawaguchi came up to her, doing his daily routines of checking up on her and the store.

“Good afternoon, Gwyneth!” he greeted her. “How are you handling things up here?”

“Good afternoon, Mr. Kawaguchi,” Gwyneth greeted back. “I am handling things fine up here, it is nothing I cannot handle.”

“Of course! How could I ever doubt your abilities?” Mr. Kawaguchi asked in a slight sarcastic manner as if he didn’t really mean it.

“You doubted my ability to handle things? Shame on you, Mr. Kawaguchi,” Gwyneth said back in a teasing, sarcastic tone.

“I shall forever be shamed for doubting you, may the heavens smite me for doing so,” Mr. Kawaguchi responded back jokingly.

This just made Gwyneth laugh before going back to fill the customer’s order, but then Mr. Kawaguchi continued the conversation.

“So, do you plan on seeing a particular someone during your lunch break?” he asked with a hint of a smirk on his face, giving her a knowing look.

Knowing that look he was giving her and what he meant by “particular someone”, Gwyneth felt herself blush a little and a smile started to form on her face, although she tried to hide it. Mr. Kawaguchi often liked to make jokes about her and Toshi and how they were going to get married one day. For some reason, a lot of people thought that she and Toshi were in love with each other just because they were constantly seen together and would do everything together. Gwyneth found Toshi to be a very handsome man, in her opinion, but she knew that they would only remain friends since Toshi’s father would never allow any of his children to marry someone like her. As much as Toshi’s father respected Gwyneth, he did not trust her due to the fact that he did not like foreigners and he was very patriotic towards his country. Both of Toshi’s older brother were like that too. The only person that Gwyneth knew would accept her into the family was Toshi’s mother, Akiko Hashimoto, and that was because she was a very kind and compassionate woman, regardless of what a person looked like.

“We are only friends, Mr. Kawaguchi, as I keep telling you,” Gwyneth said before finalizing the customer’s order and putting it in the order box.

“You keep telling yourself that, but I am telling you, that boy is in love with you, you just don’t see it yet,” Mr. Kawaguchi responded. “And deep down, you are in love with him too.”

“Even if we were in love with each other, his father would not allow him to marry me, I am not a “true” Japanese woman,” Gwyneth said almost a bit bitingly. “I am considered too “corrupt” and “evil” for him because I look like a foreigner.”

“You may not look Japanese, but in your heart, you are,” Mr. Kawaguchi responded.

Gwyneth felt herself smile a little bit at that, but it was only there briefly. As much as she considered Japan her home and adopted the culture as her own, she still experienced some prejudice from some of the citizens. Sometimes, whenever Gwyneth would walk down the street, she would see propaganda posters that would talk about the greatness of the Japanese Imperial Empire and would insult Westerners. Some of the citizens of Japan would often treat her with respect, but they were very mistrusting of her because she looked like a Westerner. As much as Gwyneth loved Japan, she hated the fact that some of its citizens were so prejudiced against people who were not of Japanese descent, or at least half-Japanese. She’s made friends with a couple of people who were only half Japanese, and she would witness first-hand the prejudice they would experience.

“I truly appreciate you saying that, but not everyone here will agree with you on that,” Gwyneth finally replied. “Not many people like me or trust me because of how I look.”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself, Gwyneth, there are a lot of people who like you more than you think.”

“Like who? Name someone else besides Toshi.”

Before Mr. Kawaguchi could respond, the sound of the bell at the door rang, indicating that another customer had come in. Both Mr. Kawaguchi and Gwyneth turned to the entrance to greet the customer politely. Upon seeing the customer, Gwyneth had to restrain from frowning, immediately recognizing him as Watanabe. As soon as he entered, some female customers who were there stopped and stared at him for a while. He looked rather handsome as he walked with confidence, wearing a rather expensive suit with polished shoes and his hair slicked back. He certainly made heads turn. However, as handsome as he looked with his expensive-looking clothes and his devilish smiles he would always give to beautiful women, Gwyneth was unfazed by it. She did consider him good-looking, but she was just not attracted to him in that way because of how arrogant he could be, and Gwyneth was not attracted to arrogant men.

As soon as Watanabe saw both Mr. Kawaguchi and Gwyneth, he greeted them politely with a smile.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Kawaguchi and Gwyneth-san, I hope your business is faring well.”

Mr. Kawaguchi did not like Watanabe much either, but out of politeness and propriety, he just smiled, bowed, and said, “It is going very well, thank you for asking. It has been a busy time for us today, lots of children have been coming in to get their books for the upcoming school year. What brings you in here today, Mr. Watanabe? Are you looking for another French literature book?”

“Yes, I am,” Watanabe said. “You seem to know exactly what it is that I want, Mr. Kawaguchi.”

“Well, it is the only thing you ask for whenever you come into the bookstore.”

“My apologies, I am just so enamored with French literature.”

“No need to apologize, Mr. Watanabe, Gwyneth here is quite fond of British literature. Sometimes, I will catch her reading about the wonderful tales of Robin Hood or King Arthur or reading a book by that female author…what’s her name again? The one who wrote romance novels during the regency era in Britain?”

“Jane Austen,” Gwyneth said.

“Right, Jane Austen!”

“Jane Austen? I never took you for the hopeless romantic type,” Watanabe said to Gwyneth.

“I am not, I just enjoy reading romance novels and I think Jane Austen writes romance novels very well,” Gwyneth replied.

“Interesting. Have you ever heard of _The Three Musketeers_?”

“The one by Alexander Dumas?”

“ _Hai_.”

“I have, but I’ve never read it”

“Well, then I would highly recommend it to you. If you really enjoy stories like Robin Hood, you may like _The Three Musketeers_.”

“Thank you, I will be sure to read it when I get the chance,” Gwyneth replied. “Now, what book are you looking for?”

“I am looking for a book called _The Hunchback of Notre Dame_ , have you heard of it?” Watanabe asked.

“Of course! The one by Victor Hugo, right?”

“ _Hai_ , do you have a copy of it here?”

“I believe so, let me see if we do.”

Gwyneth walked around from behind the counter, indicating for Watanabe to follow her, and took him to the fiction section. As she scanned the bookshelf, looking for the book Watanabe asked for, the latter began to initiate a conversation.

“So, how long has it been since you started working here?”

“Officially, it will be a year on my birthday, but Mr. Kawaguchi says I have been working here longer than that.”

“I agree with Mr. Kawaguchi, I remember always seeing you running around here taking care of the store whenever he was too sick to do it.”

“Well, he was kind to me when there were so many who were unkind to me,” Gwyneth responded. “In a way, he treats me like I am his own daughter, even though I am not Japanese.”

“How does he feel about you dating?”

“What?”

That question nearly caught Gwyneth by surprise, and she looked from the bookshelf to Watanabe, who suddenly seemed a little too close to her now. It made Gwyneth a little uncomfortable. When he saw the confusion on Gwyneth’s face, Watanabe rolled his eyes.

“Oh, stop acting so confused, Gwyneth, you are considered one of the smartest girls in school,” he said. “You should know what I mean by that question. You say he treats you like a daughter, right? Well, like all fathers, they tend to be overprotective of their daughter whenever a man takes an interest in her, so I am just wondering how he feels about you dating.”

“Um…” Gwyneth started, still unsure as to why he would ask such a question.

That seemed rather personal, especially coming from him, but she answered his question anyway.

“I guess he is okay with it, he is certainly protective of me and makes sure that whoever takes an interest in me has good intentions with me, but he mostly leaves it up to me.”

“He leaves it up to you?” Watanabe said in a surprised tone. “Why would he let you do that?”

“Well, why wouldn’t he?”

“Not many fathers that I know of allow their daughters to choose who they marry (3).”

“Well, Mr. Kawaguchi believes that he does not have the right to choose who I marry, he thinks it would be an infringement on my rights and my ability to live my life the way I want to.”

“Infringement on your rights? I do not think it is a matter of infringing on your rights, but rather on making sure that you are taken good care of,” Watanabe said. “If I were Mr. Kawaguchi, I would make sure that you marry someone who will take good care of you.”

Seeing where this conversation was going to go, Gwyneth decided to just end it, not wanting to talk about it any further. She could feel her blood boiling when Watanabe said that, feeling angry that he would belittle her in such a way as if she wasn’t capable of making the decision for herself and that she had no choice in the matter of who she gets to marry. Ever the polite one, though, Gwyneth just decided to end the conversation in a polite way.

“I appreciate your input, but that is what Mr. Kawaguchi believes. If you wish to try to change his mind on it, feel free to talk to him,” Gwyneth replied.

She then pulled out the book that Watanabe asked for and handed it to him.

“Will that be all you need?”

“No, there is something that I wish to ask you…”

‘ _Besides if I can choose whom I want to marry or not?_ ’ Gwyneth wanted to say to him, but she kept her mouth shut.

“I was wondering if you are not too busy this weekend that you would…”

Before Watanabe could even finish his sentence, the sound of the front door opening interrupted him. Both of them turned to see who had entered the store, and Gwyneth’s face light up when she saw that it was her best friend Toshi who walked in. When Toshi saw her, he gave her one of his contagious smiles when he saw her, and this made Gwyneth smile even brighter. The interaction between the two of them was not missed by Watanabe, and he glared at Toshi, although Gwyneth and Toshi did not notice it at first.

“Am I late for lunch?” Toshi asked Gwyneth.

“No, you are just in time,” Gwyneth replied. “I will be off shortly, so just wait by the door.”

Toshi nodded and that’s when he finally noticed Watanabe, seeing the way he stared at him. Toshi responded the same way. Gwyneth noticed the interaction between the two men and told Toshi with her eyes not to start anything. He seemed to get the picture, for he at least tried to be polite to Watanabe.

“Mutsuhiro-san, I did not expect to see you here today,” he said. “What brings you here?”

“Buying a book, of course, what else would I be doing in a bookshop?” Watanabe asked as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Toshi looked annoyed by this, but he kept his anger in check and continued the conversation as if Watanabe did not just treat him like he was dumb; instead, he decided to retaliate in his own way.

“Interesting,” he started. “I wonder why is it that you decided to come here and buy a book when you could get one at the bookshop that is closer to your neighborhood…”

“That store did not have the book I was looking for, so I decided to come here,” Watanabe responded. “This store offers a lot more variety of books…and other things as well.”

Gwyneth completely missed what Watanabe meant by that, for the latter’s back was turned to her, but it was not missed by Toshi. He could see the smirk on Watanabe’s face and hear the subtle suggestion in his voice, and it took a lot of his willpower to control his anger. As much as he wanted to punch Watanabe, Toshi knew he would get his ear chewed out by his father if he started a fight with him again, so he refrained from it.

“Well, I hope you enjoy reading your new book.”

He used this as a way to end the conversation, but then Watanabe spoke up again.

“Oh, Toshi-san! Did you ever tell Gwyneth about the good news?”

When Watanabe saw the confused look on Gwyneth’s look, he then looked to Toshi, who suddenly looked upset, giving Toshi a smirk.

“You didn’t? I am surprised, Toshi, I thought you told Gwyneth here everything.”

“I was planning on telling her…”

“Well, then, I shall not spoil the good news,” Watanabe said before turning to Gwyneth. “Thank you for your help, I shall see you another day.”

Gwyneth said goodbye as he walked away to go pay for the book. Once he left the store, she went up to Toshi.

“Are you alright?” she asked, seeing how upset Toshi looked.

“I am fine,” Toshi replied, trying to appear like he really was, but Gwyneth knew he really wasn’t.

“Are you ready for lunch?” Toshi finally asked after composing himself.

Gwyneth nodded and followed him out of the store, telling Mr. Kawaguchi she was going on her lunch break now and would be back soon. She decided not to ask Toshi about the “good news” that Watanabe was talking about right now, knowing that he would eventually tell her. Watanabe had a habit of saying things just to antagonize Toshi, so she figured that whatever the “good news” was must have happened recently.

They walked to the park where they usually ate their lunch. The park was their favorite place to hang out because they both found it peaceful and quiet, and the park gave them solace that no other place gave them. They sat at their usual place—a bench that was under a cherry blossom tree that was in full bloom now—and ate their lunch, eating in silence. It wasn’t until after they were done eating that they started talking from topics to politics to books and painters from outside of Japan. Toshi seemed to be back to his usual happy-go-lucky self now, and Gwyneth was glad about that. She did not like to see him upset. It was not until Toshi asked about Watanabe that the mood suddenly changed.

“What was Watanabe doing in the store, besides buying a book?”

“He came in just for that, he was looking for another French book,” Gwyneth replied. “He was interested in this book called The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo. I don’t know what it is with him and French literature…”

“And that is all?” Toshi asked.

“Yes, but he did ask me a weird question…”

“What did he ask you?”

“He asked me how Mr. Kawaguchi felt about me dating men. It was weird, it was like he was trying to ask me out or something.”

Gwyneth then noticed the look on Toshi’s face, like he was angry or something.

“Toshi, are you alright?”

Toshi opened his mouth as if trying to say something to her, but he just ended up saying, “I am fine, it is nothing you need to worry about.”

Gwyneth knew that Toshi was lying, but like any good friend, she decided to not push it. It got quiet between the two of them for a while with Toshi rubbing his hands together and turning to Gwyneth, opening and closing his mouth as if he was trying to tell her something. Finally, Toshi found the courage to say what he wanted to say.

“I have something to tell you…” he began. “Do you know how Watanabe was talking about the “good news” earlier in the bookshop?”

When Gwyneth nodded, Toshi continued.

“Well, it is good news, but it is also bad news. The good news is that my mother and I were able to get my father to agree to let me study art abroad in Paris…”

“Really?” Gwyneth said in a tone that made her sound ecstatic for him. “That’s wonderful to hear! I am so happy for you!”

Toshi smiled, but it was only briefly as his smile quickly turned into a frown. This caused Gwyneth to become concerned for her best friend. As far as she knew, this was something that Toshi always dreamed of, despite having his father being against it and his brothers teasing him for it, and she didn’t understand why he would be sad that his father was now agreeing to let him pursue art. She then realized something. Knowing how Toshi’s father was adamantly against Toshi’s desire to become a painter, Gwyneth had a feeling that his father must have agreed to it, but only on certain conditions.

“So, what is the bad news then?”

“The bad news is that my father agreed to let me study art in Paris, but only if I marry someone that he approves of, meaning that he is going to arrange a marriage between me and someone else once I graduate and get my degree.”

“And you agreed to it?”

Toshi did not answer her right away, but it was all the answer that Gwyneth needed to hear. She did not know what to say. She knew she shouldn’t have been surprised at the fact that Toshi’s father would get Toshi to agree to marry someone he did not share mutual affections with just to follow his dreams, but some part of her felt herself reeling from the shock of it. Her heart stopped beating for a minute and it suddenly felt as if her heart was being stabbed in a way. She did not know why, it just felt that way.

“But it is only for the time being!” Toshi suddenly said. “My mother and I talked about it, and we both agreed to try to convince him to let me choose. For the time being, I agreed, but mother is going to try to somehow convince him to let me choose.”

“That’s going to take a lot of effort on your mother’s part, knowing how stubborn your father can be…”

Toshi looked dejected by Gwyneth’s comment. Seeing this, Gwyneth grabbed a hold of his hand, squeezing it reassuringly.

“Whatever happens, I will support you,” she said. “If getting married to someone you barely even know is a way to follow your dreams, then so be it. I will be there to support you.”

Although it hurt Gwyneth to say something like that, she really meant it. Toshi was her best friend and she would do anything just to see his dreams come true, even if it meant supporting a marriage that could possibly have no love in it.

It seemed to make Toshi’s mood lift, though, because a smile started to form on his face.

“Thank you, Gwyneth, I truly appreciate it.”

He then put a hand over her own and then continued talking, looking into Gwyneth’s eyes as he did.

“Whatever happens, I will always consider you to be my…my best friend.”

Gwyneth only smiled in response, although she was really hurting on the inside. However, she did not want to ruin the moment because seeing Toshi happy made her happy. Whatever happened happened. She could only hope for the best that everything will turn out okay in the end.

**Author's Note:**

> I know the interaction between Toshi and Gwyneth may be a bit corny, but I hope you enjoyed it, regardless. It will probably get better as the story goes on. And yes, I am going for a love triangle between Toshi, Watanabe, and Gwyneth, just for those of you who are wondering. It's a bit cliche, I know, but I really enjoy these kind of love stories. You can already guess who wins.
> 
> (1) I will explain in the next chapter how Gwyneth went to a school like that; the only thing I will say about it now is that it has something to do with her father. All will be revealed later.
> 
> (2) I hear that in Japan, the school year starts in June instead of in August or September like it does in other countries. Correct me if I am wrong, though...
> 
> (3) Another thing that I heard that arranged marriages was pretty common during this time, although I might be wrong. I think it was more common in the higher class than it was for the lower class, and Mr. Kawaguchi is in the middle class, so for him to allow someone who he considers his daughter to choose who to marry would be considered to be quite forward thinking and a bit shocking for others in other social classes who don't allow their daughters to choose.


End file.
